Columbus Foodie

For Week 4 of One Local Summer, the centerpiece of my dish is once again sweet corn. I can’t help it, I just can’t get enough when it’s in season! But to temper the badness of last week’s coronary on a plate, this week I decided to do a Cooking Light corn chowder.

It’s almost all local - instead of applewood smoked bacon, I used double smoked bacon from Thurn’s, onion was a candy onion from 2 Crows Farms (Worthington Market), corn was from the Clintonville Farmer’s Market, thyme was from my backyard, garlic was from Clintonville, 2% milk was from Hartzler’s Dairy (Whole Foods), and I had to use a mix of Hartzler’s whole milk and Smith Dairy Cream to make local half and half. The potatoes were from the Worthington Farmer’s Market, and the chicken broth was Kitchen Magic (local to Ohio), purchased at The Anderson’s. - the only non local ingredients were the salt and pepper.

As far as the flavor goes, it’s missing a little something. Maybe a bit of cayenne or Old Bay or mustard to give it some zip? I’ll keep on experimenting with this recipe.

Corn and Fingerling Potato Chowder with Applewood-Smoked Bacon
recipe courtesy Cooking Light

2 slices applewood-smoked bacon
1 3/4 c. diced onion
3 1/2 c. fresh corn kernels (about 7 ears)
1 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 c. fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1/2 c. 2% reduced fat milk
1/2 c. half-and-half
8 oz (1/4-inch-thick) rounds fingerling potato slices
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper

Cook bacon in large Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan; crumble. Add onion to drippings in pan; cook 8 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Add corn, chopped thyme, and garlic to pan; cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Stir in broth, milk, half-and-half and potatoes; bring to a simmer. Cover and cook 10 minutes or until potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally.

Transfer 2 cups potato mixture to a blender. Remove center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure blender lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth; return pureed mixture to pan. Stir in salt and black pepper; sprinkle with crumbled bacon. Yield: 5 servings (1 cup each).

Each serving has 186 cal (27% from fat), 5.5 g fat, 7.6 g pro, 27.8 g carb, 3.4g fiber, 18 mg chol, 1.1 mg iron, 398mg sod, 84mg calc).

We (more like my husband, who has been doing a lot of the cooking lately) made this dish for the Heart of the Matter: Waterlife event, hosted by Ilva of Lucullian Delights. For this event, we were challenged to come up with a dish that uses fish in a heart healthy matter.

According to WebMD, salmon is “a great source of protein and is also packed with heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids. The American Heart Association advises eating salmon and other omega-3 rich foods twice a week for benefits that go beyond heart health.” We prepped it in a manner that is flavorful, yet low-fat.

We decided to go with an Epicurious recipe for Pan-Seared Salmon over Red Cabbage and Onions with Merlot Gastrique. The fish and the gastrique were fantastic, great texture and very flavorful. The red cabbage and onions were a bit on the bland side, but added a lot of bulk and made it a hearty, yet healthy meal. If red cabbage isn’t your thing, it would be tasty paired with a heart healthy low-fat salad.

Pan-Seared Salmon over Red Cabbage and Onions with Merlot Gastrique
from Gourmet Magazine, December 2002

2 tbsp. sugar
4 tbsp. water
2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1/4 c. finely chopped shallot (2 oz)
1/2 c. Merlot or other dry red wine
1 c. canned beef broth
1 tsp. cornstarch
4 (5 oz) skinned center-cut pieces of salmon fillet
1 tsp. olive oil

Make sauce:

Bring sugar and 2 tablespoons water to a boil in a 1-quart heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved, then boil, swirling pan occasionally, until mixture is a golden caramel, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and carefully add vinegar, then add shallot and swirl pan over low heat until caramel is dissolved, about 1 minute.

Stir in wine and boil until reduced to about 1/4 cup, about 5 minutes. Add beef broth and boil until reduced to about 1 cup, about 8 minutes. Whisk together cornstarch and remaining 2 tablespoons water, then whisk into sauce and boil, whisking, 1 minute. Season sauce with salt and pepper and keep warm, covered.

Cook salmon:

Pat salmon dry and season with salt and pepper.

Heat oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then sauté salmon, skinned side up, 3 minutes. Turn over and sauté until just cooked through, about 3 minutes more.
Serve salmon on top of red cabbage and onions with sauce spooned over. Each serving (recipe makes 4) contains about 334 calories and 11 grams fat.

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Red Cabbage and Onions

1 teaspoon olive oil
1 1/2 lb red cabbage, cored, cut into 2-inch pieces, and layers separated
1/2 lb red onions, cut into 1-inch pieces and layers separated
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Heat oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then sauté cabbage, onions, thyme, salt, and pepper, stirring, 3 minutes. Cover skillet and reduce heat to moderate, then cook, stirring occasionally, until cabbage is tender, about 12 minutes more. Each serving contains about 68 calories and 1 gram fat.

We still had a bunch of produce left from last week, and since I needed very few things (and wasn’t feeling too hot), I decided to send my husband out to the farmer’s market alone yesterday, with the promise that he’d take pictures. So very little commentary this week, just some pics of what’s available at the market. No idea which vendor is which (wasn’t there), so I’ll just point out what it is and at which market it was taken.

From the Clintonville market, he saw sweet corn by the truckload (which I had him pick up, can never have too much sweet corn).

Also, the first heirloom tomatoes of the year (which I wish he would have picked up, but didn’t).

And lots of green stuff (which is labeled)

And more beautiful flowers (again, I’m at a loss)

And at the North Market, peppers and canteloupe (yay, melons!)

and candy onions

Hopefully I’ll be back in the swing of things next week, or will maybe hit one of the mid-week markets for once.